A Friend for the End of the World
by rhetticulous
Summary: The world ending puts some things in perspective. Rhink. AU (no wives/kids)


Rating: T (Eventual M Rating)  
Author: rhetticulous  
Part: 1  
Word Count: 1444  
Summary: The world ending puts some things into perspective. Rhink. AU (no wives/kids).

* * *

 **Part 1: Discovery**

Rhett opened the door to his cozy apartment, kicking it shut with his foot after passing through the opening. He tossed his car keys on the small table near the doorway and made his way to the modern, albeit tight, kitchen. Rhett grunted quietly as he rummaged through his fridge, settling on a slice of left-over pizza.

Opting out of dishware, Rhett let himself fall onto the couch, sighing as the plush furniture subtly shaped to his form, aiding in his unwind from a long day of internetaining. Using his mouth to hold the slice of pie, Rhett groped around in the small space between the cushion and the back rest, his victory noise muffled when his hand latched onto the familiar shape of the TV remote.

Rhett flicked through the channels, eyebrows furrowing in confusion, and noticed almost every station had the same broadcast shining through the screen. His grip became tighter as he sped up his tap on the channel up button, shifting so an elbow was resting on his knee and focused more fully on the TV.

He finally stopped on a random channel, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up as he took in the melancholy plastered over the older anchors face, the man's voice somber and low.

"-The missiles malfunctioned, not going off in time to hit the target, Officials say-" Rhett swallowed trying to digest the situation; is this some sort of really fucked prank? The anchorman's stern demeanor seemed to imply otherwise. Rhett's breathing returned in shallow puffs, his heart racing uncomfortably.

"It appears," the anchorman's voice caught for a moment; he cleared his throat and continued shakily, "It appears that the meteor is due to make impact within the next seven to ten days." Rhett couldn't remember when he stopped breathing, but his body forced him to suck in a sharp breath through his teeth, the small sound filling the utter silence the cascaded over his apartment.

This has _got to be_ a joke! Rhett stood up pacing around his couch; the TV bright in the background. He shook his head chuckling, reaching into his pocket to grab his cell. He quickly scrolled through his recent calls and pressed on _Link Neal_ , the log screen cutting to the call screen. Surely Link would know what's going on; maybe he's even messing with the taller man.

The busy tone blared through the speaker and Rhett instinctively wretched the device from his ear, glaring down in confusion as he hung up and redialed his friend. This time his phone rang once, before the phone cut to an automated national emergency message. Rhett's hands clamed up and the phone slipping from his grasp, landing on the carpeted floor with a soft thud.

The tall man stood frozen in place as his mind raced; existentialism oozing from every cell in his brain. "What in the hell is happening…" he whispered to himself. Rhett let his body function on auto pilot and grabbed his keys before leaving his place. He only got a few steps away from the door when his legs turned to rubber and gave out beneath him. He leaned against the wall, trying to slow his breathing to avoid flying into a whole panic attack. He _needed_ to get himself together. Shaking his head to combat the dizzying effect the situation had on him, Rhett forced himself out of the building and to his car.

He eyed the neighborhood warily. The sound of silence was deafening as he took in the complete lack of _anyone._ Rhett's head spun; he was _just_ out here, how could he have missed the emptiness? This was Los Angeles of all places, yet the complete juxtaposition of lifelessness made the city feel like a ghost town. "Focus Rhett," he breathed out. The nauseating feeling of dread began to swallow him again and he urged himself to unlock the door to the Sudan. He slid into his seat, the loud sound of the car door closing feeling oddly out of place for the normally boisterous city. Rhett started the car and peeled out, taking the familiar drive to the place he knew he _needed_ to be. He's driven the route to his best friend's house so many times that it became second nature and it wasn't long before he was out front.

He rushed his way out of the car, heart pounding as he flipped up the porch mat to grab the spare key and made his way into the small home.

"Link?" Rhett's voiced echoed off the wall and he cleared his throat to try again. "Link, bud, are ya here?" He searched cautiously, unsure of what he'd fine, which ended up being absolutely _nothing._ He banged his fist on the wall with minute force before making his way back to his car.

He let out shaky breath, Rhett needed to find him.

"Link… where are you, man?"

* * *

Scratching under his chin, Link focused on the computer monitor in front of him. He was reviewing some scenes he and Rhett had shot earlier for their main channel. His eyes drifted to the lower corner of the screen and let out a low whistle as he noticed he'd already been there for an extra two hours. Rhett had gone home after the filming was complete, where Link had decided to stay and get ahead on some of their work.

Link exited out of the program after saving his progress, pushed out of the swivel chair and made his way to the front of the studio. He hummed the tune of a new song they were working on, but stopped when he noticed how backed up the main road was. He checked his phone for the time and proceeded to give the out of place traffic a quizzical look. It was _way_ late for the traffic to still be this awful.

Link huffed and headed back to the studio in hopes to wait out the worst of it. "Maybe I'll get home before the next day starts," Link grumbled to himself, weaving through the familiar studio and settling back in his office. He turned on the desktop, drumming his fingers on the table as it booted up. He perked back up once the log in screen appeared, typing the password swiftly.

A small smile formed on his lips while he admired his desktop background. He and Rhett where messing around with the selfie stick after a gmm a few weeks ago and looked like such dorks that Link couldn't stop himself from instantly making it his wallpaper. Eventually he moved his mouse to the google chrome icon and was instantly met with a blaring alert sound instead of a new tab.

"Shit!" Link jumped at the loud noise and knocked his knee into the under part of his desk. He shook his leg and once confirming nothing was amiss he situated himself back in front of the monitor, pushing up his glasses out of habit. His eyes shifted rapidly over the screen and he felt his stomach drop as the words processed.

He scrambled out of his seat, fumbling with his phone, causing it to fly across the small office. Link cursed under his breath and reached down for the phone carefully, quickly finding his best friend's number and dialing out. The busy tone beeped mockingly in his ear. Link rolled his eyes with frustration, feeling to prickle of tears forming in his eyes.

Link slid his glasses up onto his forehead and wiped the tears that spilled passed the brim of his under eye. He took slow, calming breaths, fixed his glasses and checked out the window to see if any of the traffic had let up; cars linked together for what seemed like miles dismayed the man. Link let the curtain fall back into place and slumped back into his seat.

Link bit off a few of his nails distractedly, pulling up the message group under _Rhett McLaughlin_ with his free hand. He quickly typed and hit send. His heart felt so heavy as he recalled the alert, the existential crisis building up in the back of his mind. He pushed it away mentally, letting his eyes close as images of his best friend filled his thoughts.

Link stared at his phone, hoping that his message makes it through the clogged up server. He _needed_ Rhett. His eyes slipped close again, exhaustion kicking in as the adrenaline surge Link felt after the initial shock of the unraveling events began to ware down. Sleep began to take him and Link's mind recalled the message he'd sent Rhett.

 _I need you, brother._


End file.
